Guest poster Bal K. Joshi is the co-founder and managing director of Thamel Dot Com, Kathmandu, Nepal. He is also a partner in Thamel International.

By Bal K. Joshi
William Kramer's comments are well taken. His words certainly reflect our belief, that "...economic empowerment is all about choice." However, I would like to add that economic empowerment also includes personal control. Treating remittances as a platform--giving diaspora the choice of directly converting those funds into products and services back in their homeland--allows them to make well informed decisions on the use of their hard-earned dollars. This is not about "top-down" or "North-South" control; it is about value-chain control. The only choice with traditional money transfer services is to remit cash, and the only control is trust and a prayer.

It is important to point out that the transformation in our thinking about remittances and development has been driven from the "bottom-up"; influenced by the stake-holders in the remittance value chain. There are two primary beneficiaries of remittances: beneficiary #1 is the third party (friends or families) receiving the funds (or equivalent); beneficiary #2 is the “remitter” or the diaspora. Both beneficiaries have needs that have to be supported by the remittance platform. It’s a known fact that most of the remittances sent home are used for daily consumption by beneficiary #1. This use of the remittances also meets the needs of beneficiary #2 by providing their desired support for their family. We also agree that the primary developmental impact of this daily consumption is the spending of the money (directly or indirectly) with merchants in the local economy. However, on the ground in Nepal, we see two realities: the massive misuse of remittances by recipients (beneficiary #1); and a strong diaspora (beneficiary #2) interest to invest in SME enterprises.

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India's rapid industrialization and urbanization is a boon to the national economy but a serious challenge in terms of an unfettered rise in energy usage and GHG emissions.  So far, India's per capita energy consumption has remained one of the lowest in Asia, because of its vast rural populace with little access to energy infrastructure.

 

This will change in the next few decades as India's booming IT sector, fueled by telecom investments and massive outsourcing, will cause new office buildings and facilities to sprout up on the horizons of cities like Bangalore and New Delhi.  Per-capita carbon emissions will triple by 2020 and overall energy consumption, which doubled between 1980 and 2001 will continue to rise.

These figures and ominous predictions in many ways parallel the experience of another Asian powerhouse - China.  It is fitting then that this week's featured company offer a similar service to WorldWell, the company I discussed earlier.


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Fresh from the "base of the pyramid" wire services (aka the info [at] nextbillion (dot) net e-mail address) comes word from the Skoll Foundation and Acumen Fund about a big new partnership, and from CGAP about their new technology program:

The Skoll Foundation, dedicated to advancing the work of social entrepreneurs around the world, today announced a $1.5 million, three-year, field-building partnership with Acumen Fund, a nonprofit venture fund that uses entrepreneurial approaches to create and support  sustainable, scalable solutions addressing poverty in the developing world. The grant builds on the productive relationship the two organizations started in 2002, and provides new opportunities to leverage the foundation’s and Acumen’s complementary knowledge, skills, partners and assets. The Skoll Foundation seeks to support Acumen’s work with social entrepreneurs and its efforts to develop metrics that will advance the field’s understanding of the financial and social impact of social enterprise. Acumen focuses on creating lasting solutions in the worldwide fight against poverty by supporting social entrepreneurs working within a market framework. Acumen does not give grants; instead, it provides equity and loans and charges near market interest rates.  To measure its progress, Acumen is creating an innovative metrics system that measures social returns and attempts to quantify the cost of delivering services using an entrepreneurial model rather than a charitable model.  Acumen will report back to the foundation annually on outcomes, challenges and lessons learned.

And from CGAP:

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Jeannie Yamine of the International Finance Corporation (and author of the excellent Innovations in Emerging Markets blog) covered the recent meeting of the International Private Enterprise Group - DC, which was held this past Wednesday on the patio at Zorba's Cafe:

Every so often, something happens that makes the thousands of blog postings, discussions, links, questions, and counter-opinions come together and take a community from talk to action. That's precisely what happened last night over souvlaki sandwiches at Zorba's Cafe in northwest Washington DC .

About 25 individuals -- total strangers in real life but close friends through months spent trading the latest cutting-edge knowledge on the 'nexus of private enterprise and development' -- came together to do what everyone said blogs could do: bring a very diverse community together and tap their individual strengths for action on a common cause.

Such praise - thanks Jeannie!  Future IPEG-DC meetings will be announced here on NextBillion.net as well.  For more about the group, its history, and its connection to Washington, read my previous post.

(And for the record, we're going to change venues from time to time, despite the excellent souvlaki offered at Zorba's).